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For American Independence Day, it seems apt to feature an American themed post. In 1831, the 55th Independence Day, Samuel Francis Smith’s “My Country (‘Tis of Thee),” the defacto anthem for the 19th century, was first sung in Boston by a children’s choir. Earlier that year, a friend had asked Smith to translate German songs that were the basis for “God Save the Queen.” Instead, Smith would pen what he called “America,” later known as “My Country (‘Tis of Thee).” Smith’s original lyrics invoke the muse of America as a “Sweet land of liberty” protected and entreated by God to “Let freedom ring.”
